The present invention relates to a continuous business forms assembly and methods of making the forms assembly and, more particularly, relates to a business forms assembly including plural, serially connected mailers with inserts of a material heavier than the material of the panels forming the mailers and methods of making the forms assembly wherein problems of tenting are minimized or eliminated.
Many and various types of multiple ply continuous business form assemblies have been provided in the past. The intermediate ply or plies of a multiple ply business form assembly conventionally form the insert or inserts for the mailer. In most mailers, the outermost and intermediate plies are normally provided with marginal feed strips whereby automated machine processing of the forms may be accomplished.
Tenting has been a particular problem in multiple ply forms and particularly those with inserts. Moreover, inserts are desirably formed of a material heavier in weight than the material of the outer mailing panels or plies encompassing the insert. The use of heavier insert material compounds the problems of tenting. As those familiar with this art will appreciate, continuous business form assemblies are usually Z-folded into stacks of forms, the panels of each form usually being secured one to the other along transverse foldlines which also define each of the forms. Thus, when the forms are folded, the thickness of the panels and insert cause the folded forms to stack unevenly and also tend to move the forms toward unfolded positions. This problem is exacerbated when the insert is formed of material heavier than the material forming the outer panels.
Additionally, inserts formed of heavier material prove to be difficult in processing through business forms machinery because of the stiffness in the marginal areas. For example, in collating business forms or multiple unit sets of forms, tractor feeds engaging the marginal feed strips of the webs are used to move the continuous webs, including the web forming the insert, through die cutting operations and a lamination station where the webs and inserts are assembled. Stiffness in the marginal areas of the heavier webs or inserts often causes difficulty in the hold-down plates of the tractor assemblies.
In accordance with the present invention, there is provided a continuous business form of a type constituting a plurality of serially connected mailers, each having a pair of outer panels and one or more inserts disposed between the outer panels. The inserts may be formed of a material heavier than the material forming the outer panels. To eliminate or minimize tenting problems when folding the continuous business forms, the inserts are die cut in the area of the separation line between adjoining forms. Thus, the transversely extending margins of the inserts are longitudinally spaced from the margins of the panels which are coincident with the separation lines of the forms. With the insert being cut back in the fold areas of the forms, the forms can be readily Z-folded in such manner that the additional bulk of the insert material does not substantially contribute to the tenting problem.
Additionally, to further facilitate feeding the forms through collaters, where the forms have heavyweight insert sheet material, the web forming the insert is provided with an additional marginal feed strip along each of its opposite edges. That is, the margins of the webs forming the outer panels of the individual mailers are provided with feed strips containing prepunched holes which align with marginal feed strips likewise provided with prepunched holes on the web forming the inserts. However, the web forming the insert has an additional marginal feed strip with prepunched holes along each of its lateral margins and which additional feed strips extend beyond the ends of the marginal feed strips of the webs forming the individual mailer panels. Consequently, when the form is collated, i.e., when the webs forming the outer panels and the interior inserts between such outer panels are brought into registration and secured, the registering marginal feed strips of the outer mailer panels and the interior or innermost marginal feed strips of the insert or inserts which register with the marginal feed strips of the outer panels align with the conventional feed assemblies. However, the additional marginal feed strips extend transversely beyond the normal form width. Thus, these additional outer marginal feed strips enable the tractor feed to carry the insert. This avoids difficulties associated with transporting a heavier insert with the registering marginal feed strips of the mailer panels. That is, no additional bulk is provided in the margin other than the bulk of the insert itself, and which additional bulk might otherwise snap open the tractor hold-down plates. Once the form is collated, including adhesively attaching the panels one to the other along their transverse edges outboard of the die cut transverse margins of the insert, the outer marginal feed strips may be removed, either as part of the collating operation or offline on a de-collater. Consequently, the form will be quite flexible in the fold and off-fold areas, thereby improving form feeding. Additionally, all adhesive is applied between the lightweight outer webs on opposite sides of the inserts in the fold and off-fold areas, thereby reducing tenting.
In a preferred embodiment according to the present invention, there is provided a mailer product, comprising a pair of panels each having opposite end portions, each end portion including a marginal feed strip with longitudinally extending spaced perforations therealong, an insert having first and second marginal feed strips each with longitudinally extending spaced perforations therealong, the first and second feed strips lying adjacent each of opposite end portions of the insert, the insert being disposed between the panels with the first feed strip at each end of the insert in registry with the feed strips of the panels at the corresponding end of the mailer, each second feed strips extending outwardly of the corresponding end of the panels.
In a further preferred embodiment according to the present invention, there is provided a serially connected, continuous form mailer product, comprising a plurality of mailers, each of the mailers including a pair of panels each having opposite end portions, each end portion including a marginal feed strip with longitudinally extending spaced perforations therealong, an insert for each mailer having first and second marginal feed strips each with longitudinally extending spaced perforations therealong, the first and second feed strips lying adjacent each of opposite end portions of the insert, the insert being disposed between the panels of a corresponding mailer with the first feed strip at each end of the insert in registry with the feed strips of the panels at the corresponding end of the mailer, each second feed strips extending outwardly of the corresponding end of the panels, each insert being formed of a material heavier than the material forming the panels and each mailer being generally rectilinear in shape, the feed strips thereof being disposed along its opposite ends, the long transversely extending edges of each insert being inset from the long transversely extending edges of the panels of the corresponding mailer, and means extending longitudinally beyond the transversely extending edges of the insert for securing the transversely extending edges of the panels of the corresponding mailer one to the other. Means are also provided for releasably securing the panels of each mailer of the continuous form to an adjoining mailer along the transversely extending edges thereof enabling the form to be folded thereabout in a manner to substantially preclude tenting thereof.
In a still further preferred embodiment according to the present invention, there is provided a method of forming a continuous mailer product separable to provide discrete mailers each having a pair of panels enclosing an insert comprising the steps of providing a pair of continuous webs each having a longitudinally extending feed strip along its opposite sides with each strip having a plurality of perforations longitudinally spaced one from the other therealong, providing a third continuous web having a pair of marginal feed strips along each of its opposite sides with each strip having a plurality of perforations longitudinally spaced one from the other therealong, die cutting the third web at longitudinally spaced locations therealong to define a plurality of inserts with longitudinally inset margins extending transversely from the pair of feed strips along one side of the third web to the pair of feed strips along the opposite side of the third web, applying an adhesive to one of the pair of webs at transversely extending longitudinally spaced positions therealong, transporting the third web, using the outermost feed strips of each pair thereof as part of a transporting mechanism, between the pair of webs so that transversely extending portions of the webs overlie one another and are directly adhesively secured to one another in the the die cut areas of said insert, providing a transversely extending separating line along the pair of webs at longitudinally spaced positions therealong for dividing the webs upon separation along the separating lines into discrete panels and folding the panels in Z fashion along the separating lines with the inserts spaced at least along one transversely extending marginal edge thereof from the foldline to avoid tenting.
Accordingly, it is a primary object of the present invention to provide a continuous business form assembly and method of forming the assembly which facilitates feeding the forms through processing machines, particularly where heavyweight inserts are involved.
These and further objects and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent upon reference to the following specification, appended claims and drawings.